How to Catch more waves with the Coco Chanel Paddle

Everyone knows the Coco Chanel logo right? The two interlocking Cs are not just a sign of luxury, but also a great way to paddle. If you want to have the most efficient paddle technique you need to increase the length of your stroke. Paddling in the shape of a C achieves that. If you use the Coco Chanel Paddle you’ll be covering more distance faster. That means more waves and fewer turtle rolls! This video will take you through some things to do and others to avoid to improve your paddle skills and have you catching more waves!

Why it’s best to learn to surf from women

At Surf With Amigas, we take a humorous approach to teaching surf skills. You’ll learn to turn with your boobs and to avoid paddling like a T-Rex. You’ll also hear that you should paddle like the Coco Chanel logo. Come learn and laugh with us! That’s the difference of a surf camp run by women!

Longboard Surf Coaching

The spot we surf in Northern Nicaragua for our women’s surf yoga retreats is ideal for improving your longboarding skills. This particular week in mid December 2017 had awesome super long lefts and rights that were great for all surfing levels. Some ladies were working on just standing up for the first time, while others were working on cross-stepping and trying to nose ride. No matter your current ability, we will individualize our coaching to make sure you get the help you need to achieve your goals.

Practicing paddle techniques in the pool during Paddle School!

Other Activities

Of course it’s not all about surfing. We also offered daily restorative yoga sessions, played kickball with local ladies, hiked and then boarded down a volcano, and enjoyed the gorgeous scenery of Nicaragua.

Restorative yoga

Shoulder opening class to stretch out tired surfing muscles.

Check out the video highlights from the week!

Come and join us on our next retreat!

All our available dates are listed on the schedule page. We will be adding more for winter next year very soon.

Beginning October 2018 Surf With Amigas will be taking over a gorgeous ocean-front hotel in Northern Nicaragua as our new home base.

Stay with us for a surf yoga retreat in Nicaragua at our new retreat base and watch the waves at “the Bay” all day! The Bay is a sand bottom break that features great waves for experienced surfers and also super fun user-friendly waves for beginners. This is the very best spot to learn to stand up for the first time. It is also a great spot to work on nose riding, cutbacks, generating your own speed, and doing turns. This is the spot to surf twice a day.

User friendly waves for all ability levels at the bay.

The view walking up to the boutique hotel space.

Of course we’ll also do some driving and boating missions to surf other spots depending on conditions and desires of the group. There are lots of other surf options nearby. We are very excited about the ability to be in tune with the ocean, easily surf multiple times per day, and be on it whenever it’s good!

A Boutique Resort in Northern Nicaragua

The resort features four stylish ocean-view, thatch-roof cabanas. Each cabana has its own ensuite open-air bathroom, relaxing hammocks and lounge spaces. There’s a refreshing swimming pool for midday cooling dips. There’s a brand new ocean-view yoga studio, and stylish bar and restaurant space to enjoy healthy delicious meals.

Rainy season views from the pool deck.

We are excited to have the opportunity to curate the entire Surf Yoga Retreat experience from the vibe at the resort to the meals.

In the past we have partnered with resorts on a week by week basis using their restaurant and staff. This new situation will be all Surf With Amigas from the delicious healthy menu to the music playlist.

Fewer cabanas mean smaller groups and more retreat dates per year beginning mid October 2018. We’ll be updating the schedule and uploading more photos and videos soon!

Congratulations to Jackie and Hugo who are newly engaged and celebrated with a few party waves in Costa Rica.

Surf coaching retreats for women and men in Costa Rica

If you’re looking for high level surf coaching open to primarily women but also sometimes men, Surf With Amigas is the place! This particular video highlights a co-ed week that was open to women and their boyfriend, husband, brother, or best guy friend.

Uncrowded surf

Surf With Amigas focuses on locations where we can take over the lineups and get a ton of waves. It’s true that Costa Rica can be crowded, but not every surf spot is full of people. We will find empty waves! The area we’ll stay is further off the beaten path of tourists. We will stay surrounded by jungle, watching monkeys jump from tree to tree. We’ll surf with sea turtles. We’ll watch scarlet macaws fly overhead.

One of our advanced level surf coaches, Michelle hits the lip with her longboard.

Surf With Amigas is the best women’s only surf coaching program in Costa Rica.

Our retreats are beneficial for surfers of all levels who want to improve their surfing. We focus on locations with awesome waves that are uncrowded and great for practicing. We have the best female instructors on hand to watch what you are doing and offer tips. They will surf alongside you to inspire you, but also be right by your side as you paddle out and sit in the lineup. After each session we will go over the video footage one on one so you can really see what you’re doing and what you could do better to take your surfing to the next level.

Check out this video highlight reel from a retreat in Costa Rica in November 2017.

Surf With Amigas creates a culture of support.

Aside from the best coaching, we have the most supportive atmosphere. Yes, it’s all focused on surfing, but there’s more to it as well. Evening chats with a glass of wine, working through fear together, talking story and lots of laughter. Come join our crew of adventurous Amigas!

Here’s just a sample in black and white, although the reality is a whole lot more colorful!

Surf Retreats for all levels Beginner and Advanced.

Our Northern Nicaragua location retreats are great for surfers of all levels, beginner to advanced. We typically have mixed level groups including ladies who have never surfed before and ladies who have been surfing for years. The more advanced surfers come to take their skills to the next level or just make new surfing friends. This week was a great mix of both.

Late November is also one of the nicest times of the year in Central America with really clean medium sized waves, sunny skies, and great weather.

These retreats are all about empowerment, bonding, adventure, pushing yourself, and reviving your energy so that you go home ready to take on the world.

As you can see in the video, aside from surfing there will be other adventures. Want to gallop down the beach at sunset? This is the spot for you. We’ll also explore the old town of Leon, go volcano boarding, and learn to salsa dance. We’ll interact with the local community. We’ll eat amazing food. We’ll enjoy sunset cocktails. We’ll help you improve your surfing with one on one video analysis and targeted classroom sessions.

Since our team is made up of all women, we will support you in and out of the water. We’ll be happy to hear your stories and listen to what you’re going through. We will encourage you to achieve your goals whatever they are.

Does your surf instructor surf like this?

One thing that sets Surf With Amigas apart from other surf camps is our group of incredibly talented female surf instructors. When you learn to surf from women, it’s a completely different situation and a more complete experience. We hire the best instructors and pay them well so that they are motivated to help you catch waves, vs. being surf starved themselves. That doesn’t mean that they don’t get a chance to catch a few waves alongside the guests, but that they are happy to give up the best waves to you!

It’s best to learn from female surf instructors.

Women understand women. Learning to surf is more than just physical. It’s about overcoming fears, believing in oneself, and learning to trust. Women can offer a different level of support in those areas. Plus you don’t have to worry about bikini malfunctions or how your hair looks.

Some other camps also feature female instructors, but few have the quality of experienced surfers that we do. Of course wipeouts happen regardless of your ability level and those are worth watching along with the awesome rides.

Here’s a highlight video showing three of our surf instructors at a recent advanced tube riding clinic in Nicaragua.

Thanksgiving week in Nicaragua is always a good one for a surf yoga retreat. November is one of the best months of the year in Nicaragua. We have awesome weather, perfectly groomed waves, and plenty of sunshine.

This week we had a saucy fun group of ladies who were loving the surf yoga retreat dance parties. They enjoyed pool parties, volcano boarding, horseback riding on the beach, and all the other adventures that pop up during the week.

Many of our guests this week were returning Amigas. It’s always fun to reconnect and see improvement in their surfing. Not all of our retreats feature a lot partying, but this particular group was happy to put away a few rum shots here and there. Who can resist some rum-fueled synchronized swimming at sunset in such a gorgeous environment?

These retreats are all about empowerment, bonding, adventure, pushing yourself, and reviving your energy so that you go home ready to take on the world.

In October we hosted our very first exclusively advanced level tube riding clinic. Seven Amigas and one Amigo joined us, all with the goal of getting their first tube ride. The Surf With Amigas staff offered in-water help yelling “go go go, cute one!, daily video coaching, and classroom sessions to get them into position. By the end of the week half the group had gotten their first tube ride! The rest have the tools to keep practicing at home to make it happen.

Here’s the highlight video from all the guests. Standby for the highlights from the instructors showing how it’s done. I love the wipeout sections of this video! It shows how much everyone wanted to get their first tube ride and were willing to push themselves over the edge!

Alison charging a hollow wave.

If you want to improve your skills and are an intermediate to advanced surfer, join us on one of our advanced coaching retreats for surf, yoga, some adventure, and high level coaching to get you to achieve your goals!

This video sums up all of the adventures that we offer during one of our womens surf yoga adventure weeks. We never seem to capture any footage of yoga since everyone is just enjoying and relaxing, but trust me there’s plenty of yoga too! This week included Halloween in case you were wondering about the face paint and costumes.
Always a good time!